Springy support of tractors



Aug. 10, 1943. v mm 2326,659

' SPRINGY SUPPORTS OF TRACTORS Filed July so, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' 4INVENTOR. c| Aus HINRICH KOHN ATTORNEY.

Patented Aug. 18," 194 3 Clans Hinrich Kilian, Rappers'wil, St. Gallon,Switzerland, assignor to Karl Seiler, Zurich,

Switzerland 1 Application ruiyso, min s erial No. 348,516 f In switzerland AprilZ'Z, i939. (c1. sofa-9) V I 4 Claims. This inventionrelates to tractors and similar machines. s

Tractors and similar vehicles are usually driven and supported byendless belts'the elements of i which engaging the ground are in turnengaged from above by rollers supportingthe' body of the vehicle.Instead of endless belts-a series of footplates is sometimes used whichengages the surface of the ground and is attached to rollerchainsrunning on tracks connected with or forming the frame. of the vehicleand thus supporting it. In the first case the rollers are tojbe'resilientlymountedon the frame, in thelatter case the footplates are.resiliently to befimountedon the rollers. I 1 v The resilientconnections between the axles of the rollers andeither the frame or thefootplate's caused considerable diificulties. Vehicles of this type areintend'edto pass. not only-over paved roads but also over-graded,dusty-and sometimes muddy ground. The springs therefore are to beprotected against dust anddirt in order to secure their permanentoperation, and to this end to be .completely enclosed in a resilientcover. ,While with ordinary vehicles the springs are permanently underload, at least that of the vehicle, springs connected with footplatesare under load only whilethe foo-tplates engage the ground, .but

are non-loaded as soon as the footnlates leave and are off the groundand idle. -Rollers engage' ing endless belts are inpermanent contactwith Fig. 1 shows more diagrammatically a vehicle,

such as a tank, provided with an .embodiment'of" the invention, Fig. 2more diagrammatically 20.

the latter; however, thebelt should notbe pressed too far outward,particularly whenit passes a groove in the ground or a ditch. A more orless complete release of the springs causes-in any case undesirablevibrations andgrattling, the former increasing the wear on the springysupport and the latter disturbing the operator- .It has been attemptedtherefore to limit the relative movement of theparts attached tothespringsi so that the latter are still kept under some tension whenidle, and vibrations as well as-rattling are reduced or avoided thereby.I

It is anobject of the invention to provide-a simple and eflicientstructure for conn'ectin'gthe rollers with their support or a supportedbody which prevents dust and dirt from interfering with the espansionandcontraction of the spring and simultaneously limits the expansion of theI spring when it is elf-load or idle.

' It isanother object also limits the expansion of the spring whenoiT-load or idle. 1

It is a further object of the inventiontoprovide' a resilientand-springy structure for connecting the rollers with the support orsupported. body which is dustand'dirt-proof and capable of limitedexpansion only. V 7

It is still another object of the invention to provide a dirtanddust-proof connection between the rollers and the. support or supportedbody which is resilient in one direction and rigid in ancther'direction,capable of limited expanison 7 only. I V These and other objects of theinventionwill' be. more clearly understood as the specification proceedswith reference to the drawings inwhich another embodiment of theinvention applied to a tractor, Fig. 3a crosssection, partly in elevar-fion talren along line I IIIII in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 a side elevation, partlyin section, along line IV -IV in Fig. 3, Fig. 5 a View along line Y-s-V.in Fig. 3, Fig. 6 a section, partly in elevation, takenalong line VI--VIin Fig. 1, and Fig. 7 aside View in direction of arrow VII in Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings; Figs. 1 and fi-show' the body It of avehicle, such as a tank, provided P with a frame Ii inwhich'pairs ofguiding rolls or wheels l2, iii are journalled g one pair of the rollsl2, i3 is driven by a motor, such .-as an internal combustion engine, asis well-known in theart and therefore not showniin detail inthedrawings. Endless belts I i suitably composed of 1 short platesconnected by joints run over'the rolls 5 2,13 andare takenalong by thedriven. pair of'rollers either through friction or by means of engagingtooth-like elements on the inside 'ofi of the driving wheel, not

belt M and the outside shown either. 7

Plates l5 of belts I l which just "engage the ground "are resilientlysupported by 7 pairs of rollers I6, I 7, each pair being connected with3 frame l! by means of a resilient structure 18, I9

to be described more in detailhereafter.

Referring to Figs. 2 and "I, thebody ll! of a hicle, such as a tractcnisprovided with a frame structure comprising two runways for arollerchain. on each side. The runways'consist of four.

rails 2!',;22, On each runway "a roller}, chain runs which iscomposed'of two alternating types or links ildjand 25, which 'willbedescribed more in detail later on;

Links 24; are provided with a resilient mounting tered by means of rings37 and bolt 34.

26 for a footplate 2l adapted to engage the ground.

' The two types of links 24 and 25 are to be seen in Figs. 4 and 5.Links 24 consist of a middle 3 Rollers 32 provided with tyres or flanges33 are slipped over the ends of tube 35.

vided with shoulders 36 is centered withintube by rings 31. Ring-likwashers 38 are slipped over the ends of the bolt in front ofrings.3l,.and the rollers 32 are slipped over the ends of the bolt infront of the washers 38 and suitably keyed thereon. Th projecting ends39 of bolt 34 are reduced in diameter and screw-threaded, and nuts 40screwed on to hold the rollers in place. 4| is a packing or the likearranged in a recess of flange 33 and spaced from lug .29 by ring 42slipped over tube 30. l

From this it appears that each joint of thelink is-formed by' ube 59 asaxle or pivot on which the lugs 29 and 3! are journalled and at the endsof which rollers. 32 are fixedly attached and cen- Anyotherconvenientstructure of the axles and links forconnecting themWith'the rollers-'32 to form the joint..may be provided Lubricationofthe joints, not essential for the invention, is not shown.

. On the inside of cylinder 28 of each link 24 two rings 43, 44 arespacedly arranged serving as on one end by and integral-with a wall 45;On

Bolt 34 protheoutside of the other end of and connected withcylinder-.45 a ring 41 is provided.

i Aioctplatefl, of the shape shown or of any other desired shape, isprovided with a projecting centerportion 48 from which a ring-49projects.

The end of cylinder 45 with wall 46 snugly fits within ring-49. Studsfitting in aligned holes of center portion 48 andwall 46 preventrelative rotation ofthese par-ts. Screw5l inserted in a recess52 otiootplate 27 from the outside passes through a bore inthe footplate andis screwed into a screw-threaded bore of wall 45. and are reinforcingribs of. the footplate. v

-A pleated collar l53of leather or any other dustprocf. fabric isfastened on one end in a ring 54 and on theother end slipped over, theoutside end ofcylinder 23 and h ldinlpositionby another slipped overring55; set-screws 55.11:: ring55 in position, while ring 54 is held inposition by friction. l V

Inorder to prevent rotation of cylinder 55 relative to cylinderZii, theformer is provided with ribs l on opposite sides engaging recesses'fi inrings 43 and 44. V j

'A' bottom 59 is fastened to th lower end of cylinder 28 bymeansofscrews 69 and provided with holes 61 suitably covered by a fabric (notshown), permeable by air. Bottom'59 at the i nside is provided with aprojecting cylindrical center portion 62. A coil spring 63 is insertedinto cylinder 45 and rests at one end of the'inside of wall 46 and atthe other end on bottomifi,

and is held in position by. the centerpiece 52.

When assembling the springy connection of the joint of ,the roller chainwith the support or footplate 2T, cylinder 23 is open and. bottom 55 notyet attached thereto. Cylinder 45 is inserted into cylinder 28, Fig. 3,from below through the open end of the latter, thereupon spring 63isinserted and bottom 59 attached to cylinder 28 by means of screws 60.Thereupon collar 53 is slipped over the upper end of cylinder 45 andring 54 pressed over it to the place shown in Fig. 3. Now ring 55 isslipped over collar 53 and pressed into the position shown, and fixed byscrews 56. Studs 50 are inserted into wall 46 and footplate 21 pressedinto the position shown on top of'cylinder 45, thereby engaging studs58. Eventually, screw 5| is tightly screwed in.

It will be appreciated that the footplates 27 when engaging the groundmore or less further compress spring 63, to meet the unevenness of theground. Springl63 expands as soon as the footplate runs of! the ground.According to the invention rings and 41 are provided which engagewhenspring 63 expands, and the lengths ofthe cooperating cylinders 28and 45 as well as the spacing of rings 44, 41 are chosen so that thelatterengage when spring 63 expands to a predetermined extent withoutbeing, however, completely released or untensioned. Thereby ring 4'! ispressed withconsiderable force against ring 44 by spring 63 and movementof cylinder 45 relativeto cylinder 28 .is prevented when footplate 211soil-load. Consequently undesirable vibrations and wear between theengaging cylinders as well as rattling. are avoided. It willbe furtherappreciated that the resilient connection between the footplate 27andthe joint isdustand. dirt-proof, and the covers permeable by air forholes 6| permit the air enclosed in cylinders 23, 45 to escape whenspring 63 is compressed and, vice Versa, air to enter that space whenspring 63 expands, but keeping out dust and dirt. Since the compressionand expansion of air in cylinders 28, 45 is rel'atively small and in anycase assists theresilient action'of spring'53, holes 6| may be deleted,if desired.

. In Figs. 1 and 6, [3 corresponds to cylinder 23, i9 to collar 53,and'the pivots 65, 51 on which rollers I5; I! revolve are directlyattached tovcylinder 28. 'The other reference numbers indicate similarparts as in Figs. 3 to 5.

From the above it will be. appreciated that .body is representedby frameH, and in the embodiment according to Figs. 2 to 5 and 7 by footplate2l.f

In both cases referred to above one of the telescoping cylinders, viz.l8 or'28, is rigidly attached to the axles 66, 61 or 35 of the rollerswhich engage in the embodiment of the invention according to Figs. 1 and6 consecutive plates [5 of the endless belt and in the other embodimentthe rails 20 through 23 of the frame structure. The other'one of thetelescoping cylinders, viz. 45, is rigidly connected in the firstembodiment of the "invention according to Figs-landfiwiththe supportingframe structure, and inthe other embodiment ofthe invention with asupporting footplate 21.

In both embodiments of the invention the telescoping cylinders andspring enclosed by them resiliently transmit the weight of the body ofthe vehicle to the elements engaging the ground, viz. the footeridlessbelt; With-both embodiments of. the invention the plates 21101the plates l5 of the cooperating rings or abutments 44, 4'! whenengaging upon predeterminedrelative movement of the telescopingcylinders and expansion of the spring, prevent vibration and wear aswellas rattling, and in any event prevent complete separation of thetelescoping cylinders.

In the first embodiment according to Figs. 1 and 6, an undue releasecfthe spring can occur when the endless belt just engaged by a rollerpasses a hole or ditch and thereby runs oil the ground; would the springbe permitted to expand completely, the belt would be unduly strained andvibrations might set in. With the oth r embodiment of the invention,undue release of the spring can occur when the footplate runs off theground and is idle. Due to centrifugal forces, the ioctplate could alsodraw cylinder 45 out of cylinder 28.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to theexemplifications explained above with reference to the drawings but tobe derived in its broadest aspect from the ap pended claims.

What I claim is:

l. A vehicle, such as a tractor comprising, in combination, a supportingframe provided with tracks forming closed paths in substantiallyvertical planes, roller chains each substantially composed of twoalternating types of links connected by joints, each joint comprising anaxle and rollers on both ends of the axle, each roller engaging one ofsaid tracks; one type of said links comprising a first cylinder coaxialwith a substantially vertical plane and'open towards the outside of saidvehicle and the groundin corresponding positions, a second cylinderslidably arranged in said first cylinder and projecting to the outsideof said vehicle, means for closing the inside end of said firstcylinder, means for closing the outside end of said second cylinder andmeans are under load and said cylinders slide deeper into each other andto engage each other when said resilient means expand offload to apredetermined extent but still are tensioned; the other type of saidlinks being journaled on and connecting a pair of adjacent axles.

I 2. In combination with a vehicle, such as a tractor, the weight of thebody of which is translated through rollers and resilientstructures'upon supporting and propagating foot plates, said resilientstructures comprising a pair of telescoping tubular elements closed onopposite ends and engaging one another intwo axially distantcircumferential areas the distance of which is substantial and the samein all the relative positions of said elements, tensicned resilientmeans as exemplified by a compressed spring arranged elements, and rigidmeans connected with the closed ends, abutments of said elementsarranged to cooperate in limiting the relative motion of said elementsunder action of said resilient means when off-load, one of saidabutments also form ing one of said areas, rigid means including axlesfor rollers attached to the outer one of said inner oneof said elementsfor connecting it with a footplate.

3. A resilient structure for translating the weight of the body of avehicle, such as-atractor, upon supporting and propagating means,

comprising two telescoping tubular elements closed, on opposite ends, aninwardly. projecting slideway on the outer of said elements enments insaid opposite directions, and rigid means including axles for rollersattached to the out'e Gil side of the outer of said elements so that aplane vertical tovthe longitudinal axis of said tubular means andthrough said axles cuts said slideway. I

4. In combination with a vehicle, such as a tractor, provided withdriving means including supporting structures, such as footplates, con

secutively and recurrently engaging the-ground, with a frame of the bodyof said vehicle, and with rollers securing movement of said drivingmeans relative to said body in predetermined.

path: a resilient structure comprising two tubular elements, oneslidable in the other and closed on opposite ends, one of said elementsprovided with a projecting slideway engaging thefother element over asubstantial length of its axial extension the same in all relativepositions of said, elements; tensicned resilient. means, as exem-e 1plified by a compressed spring, arranged within, said tubular elementsand engaging said closed ends; an outside projecting ring near-the innerend of the inner of said tubular elements, a' substantially circularprojection on the inside" of the outer of said tubular elements, saidring and projection arranged to be spaced .from each other when saidresilient means are under load and said elements have slid deeper intoeach other and to engage each other upon prede-"f termined expansion ofsaid resilient means when" off-load but still tensicned; a flexibledust-proof collar arranged between the open end of the outer of saidelements and the projecting DOT-,-

tion of said inner element; a structure rigidly connected with one ofsaid elements for rotat ably connecting a roller therewith; and meansfor rigidly connecting the other of saidelements with said supportingstructures.

CLAUS HINRICH KoHN.

within said tubular elements and engaging said

